Readiness is course-specific
Two runners with identical fitness can be ready for one race and unprepared for another. CourseRecon reads what a course actually demands, then scores your own training against it.
The four demands
Every trail race draws on four physiological pillars. CourseRecon scores each one independently, so you see not just whether you're ready but where the gap is.
Weighted by the race, not a fixed formula
The pillars don't carry equal weight — the mix shifts with each race's duration and terrain. A short, runnable race leans hard on the aerobic engine; a long mountain ultra shifts weight onto descending and durability, where most days are won or lost. Your readiness score reflects the demands of your race, highlighting the pillar that matters most.
Scored against your own training
Connect Strava and CourseRecon analyses your recent training — volume, climbing, long efforts, descent load, and how you hold up deep into long days — and grades each pillar against the course's requirements. The pillars combine into one readiness score on a 0–100 scale:
Evidence basis
The model is grounded in the physiology of trail racing — the eccentric muscle damage of sustained descending, the repeated-bout adaptation that protects trained quads, and the late-race fade that durability training resists. It's tuned and validated against real race outcomes, not a generic fitness number.
What a readiness score isn't
Trail and ultra racing is genuinely hard, and no number makes it safe. A high readiness score means your training lines up with what the course demands — it's not a guarantee you'll finish, and it can't account for everything a long day in the mountains throws at you.
CourseRecon scores the physical match between your training and the course. It doesn't plan your nutrition or hydration, choose your gear, read the weather, or make race-day decisions for you — and it's not medical advice. Those calls stay with you and your coach. If you have any health concerns, talk to a doctor before taking on a serious endurance event.